Nintendo Finally Announces The Switch's Most Needed Accessory

There's been one giant complaint about the Nintendo Switch when it comes to portability and being able to play while on the go: the battery life. When playing high-end AAA games the Nintendo Switch may net you two to three hours tops for most titles, and then the battery is completely drained. Well, Nintendo may have a fix for that.

The company finally announced one of the console's most needed accessories: a portable charger. You can finally start charging the Switch on the go using an adjustable charging stand for the Switch while it's in the handheld mode..

The charger will launch this summer starting July 13th, for $19.99. It's not that bad of a price for an accessory that a ton of people will likely want to get their hands on when it finally launches. At present, there's no convenient way to properly charge your Switch in tabletop mode unless you buy a specific kind of cable kit and Jerry-rigged ways to charge the Switch while it's in use.

Many gamers complained to Nintendo about a charging solution when the hybrid is in tabletop mode, and have been complaining since the Switch came out back in March of 2017. It wasn't until recently did Nintendo finally heed the pleas and come up with the adjustable charging station, which makes it easy to charge-and-play while the console is in tabletop mode.

There are three main modes of play for the Switch, TV mode, handheld mode, and tabletop mode, and when in tabletop mode the console can be set on a desk or table via a kickstand. However, since the charging port of the Switch is on the bottom the device, you can't play and plug in at the same time. Typically, if you wanted to charge the Switch while in tabletop mode, you would have to lay it on the back so that the screen is facing straight up, and then plug the cable in at the bottom. Obviously, it makes it practically impossible to play the Switch while it's in this position when undocked from the base.

The adjustable charger allows you to charge the Switch while it's positioned in tabletop mode, so that this way you can still play your games and charge the system at the same time.

The adjustable charge comes with an AC adapter port on the side and plugs into the Switch from the bottom. The charge allows you to play and keep your gameplay sessions fresh.

This is a pretty big step in making the Switch more compatible and upping the quality of life for gamers who own the Nintendo Switch.

It's interesting that Nintendo would introduce the portable charger for the tabletop mode at this juncture, because maybe there's something else that the company has in store for the system when E3 rolls around. This could also help with using the Switch with the Nintendo Labo, where the Switch is oftentimes outside of the dock, it could help keep it charged as you either build stuff or use it with the cardboard items you've built.

Regardless of what you use it for, the portable charger will be available this July. There will be more details made available over on the Nintendo Switch website closer to its release.